Letters to the Editor for Jan. 26

There will be a host of hearings and committees and commissions in the near future about guns and violence and the killing of the innocent. These could be really productive if they weren't all focused on finding some magic bullet in the form of some law that will stop such things as the Newtown and other shootings from happening again.

Unfortunately, there is no magic law that will accomplish the desired goal. Laws can be passed banning all sorts of things and confiscating guns or whatever can harm the innocent. Start simple. Ban guns that have large magazines or ban large magazines.

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First, switching clips is fast so that ban would accomplish little. Second, if I had the motivation, I could make a large capacity magazine that would hold -- name the number -- rounds. Oh, then ban the weapon that would attach to the magazine.

If motivated, I could make a fully auto firearm that would accept the magazine I make. Besides which, guns are only one thing that can hurt people. There are a slew of other more destructive means fairly readily available.

Doing all of that I'm avoiding the real problem which is stopping people from wanting to harm the innocent - from getting a sense of power by the cowardly behavior. The goal should be to take effective action to stop the attraction of the senseless, cowardly action of not just events like Newtown but drive by shootings or any act where defenseless people are harmed.

My somewhat biased opinion is that a primary culprit for those acts is the nature of media reporting. In the late '60s, Life magazine did an article on the Hell's Angels in which they told of how the group's version of cool involved raping a woman on a bar counter. I overheard a group of Hell's Angels wannabes talking about the article and "Hey, look what they think is cool." Within a year, a number of that group assaulted and raped a girl and her boyfriend. It happened in the New Haven area.

Now Life may not have been the catalyst for that rape, but they sure were not a deterrent. Had the correct scorn been attached to the act, the odds are the emulation would have been far less.

So while people scramble to make laws that will primarily inconvenience the law abiding and do little but make people feel good for doing something, think about what can be done to make any hurting of the innocent, something that will diminish the perpetrator in their and everybody's eyes. That would be a real fix. Regulating ownership of anything to the law abiding does nothing except deny freedom to the innocent.

-- Ben Davidson, Winsted

Like Clinton said ...

At this point what difference does it make for the Benghazi fiasco and cover- up of Secretary Clinton? The ambassador and four other Americans lost their lives.

French would call it "eau de chaussette." Critics have alleged that the Obama administration has lied.

Sen. Rand Paul (R) said: "If I were president, I would have relieved you of your post," referring to Secretary Clinton.

The Ancient Romans said: "Historia magistra vitae."

Do we learn anything from history? How many times has this catastrophe has happened in the past?

-- Dario Diorio, Torrington

Remembering Stan Musial

The passing of Stan Musial is a sad event for all who knew of him!

Litchfield, Connecticut, my life-long home, may be far away from St. Louis and populated by Red Sox, Mets and Yankees fans, but any baseball fanatic who followed Mr. Musial's career, even to a minute degree, had to love his kind and wondrous personality.

Indeed, I will never, ever forget the glorious human being who was Stan The Man Musial. And, thank The Lord I bumped into him in person twice by amazing chance.

One of those days, my son, Tommie, a Red Sox fan, and I, a Giants fan, were standing outside the door of the room where the Hall of Famers go for their party in Cooperstown, N.Y. Of course, we were gazing closely to catch glimpses of our Red Sox and Giants all time heroes. As we were doing so, a fan, standing right behind us, who did not need a microphone, began announcing the names and nick names of each player moving toward us.

"Pee Wee Reese!" he exclaimed as Pee Wee moved right up to us and gave all of us a high wave. "Willie Stretch McCovey!" the microphone blurted out. Willie simply moved by with speed, as if he were rushing out of the dugout to his first base post at a Polo Grounds home game. I saw quite a few of those games with my dad, Thomas D. Williams, a Giants fan as well, particularly after Willie Mays became my favorite rookie center fielder ever.

Our announcer continued his stupendous identifications of a couple of other 'famers before his apparent favorite arrived.

"Stan Musial!" he exclaimed with extraordinary enthusiasm. Stan, donning a huge smile, began walking toward us from the car that took him there. As Stan, got closer, our announcer yelled out: "Give us the stance, Stan!"

So Stan stopped in mid-walk, and indeed gave us that notorious batting stance: his two arms high above and well in back of his head and his legs slightly crouched and apart. Without further prompting, Stan swung his arms forward as if his bat was about to strike a fast ball. He finished the swing, moved forward toward Tommie and I, resumed his stance and swung again.

By the time Stan repeated this for his third swing, he was just feet away from us. He resumed his stance and exclaimed: "Once again?!"

But, he stopped there for seconds, dropped the imaginary bat, broke out with an amazing smile and continued walking into the Hall of Fame party.

Upon another occasion, years apart, I was anticipating more lively action from Hall of Famers close to the same hallers' party location. First, I remember Yogi Berra and several other 'famers trudge by without episode or comment except for yells from the crowd: "Hey Yogi, Yogi, Yogi!" No answer and on into the Hall he walked.

I was a bit disappointed until I saw this guy I could not yet recognize get out of a car, and began his energetic walk. As he did so, he reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a harmonica. He soon put it to his lips as he continued his path and began playing "Take Me Out To The Ball Game!" As he was finishing, the crowd yelled: "Give it to us again Stan!"

It was Stan The Man and once again, he belted another one out of the park: this one, however, was the greatest of baseball songs!